Former Supreme Court Judge Justice Rohinton Nariman stressed that judges must live only by oath to the Constitution, not divine intervention, while upholding laws and constitutional morality.
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NEW DELHI: Former Supreme Court judge Justice Rohinton Nariman has cautioned against judges attributing their judgments to divine intervention. Speaking at the KM Bashir Memorial Lecture organised by the Press Club of Trivandrum, Kerala, Justice Nariman underlined that such practices would amount to a violation of a judge’s oath.
Responding to an audience question about former Chief Justices publicly speaking about divine influence in judgments, Justice Nariman said:
“Whether with divine or bovine intervention or any other kind of intervention, if a judge delivers a judgment, he is violating his oath to the Constitution.”
The remark appeared to be a reference to former CJI DY Chandrachud’s statement that he had prayed to God while seeking a solution to the Ayodhya Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid dispute, decided by the Supreme Court in 2019.
Justice Nariman was categorical that judges must remain bound by the Constitution and laws:
“You (judges) have to live only by your oath to the Constitution and the laws. And when you live by your oath to the Constitution and the laws, you certainly bring in your own morality. That’s about as far as it goes.”
Delivering his lecture on “Fraternity in a Secular State: The Protection of Cultural Rights and Duties”, Justice Nariman argued that secularism is indispensable to achieving fraternity, a cardinal value enshrined in the Constitution of India.
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Challenging the misconception that secularism was only introduced by the 42nd Amendment, Justice Nariman observed:
“It’s a misnomer to say that secularism was introduced only by the 42nd amendment. Some part of it was always already there… Now secularism according to me is an absolute must as a stepping stone towards achieving fraternity. You cannot have fraternity in a theocratic state.”
Justice Nariman also spoke about his extensive study of religious texts and principles while writing his latest book, An Ode to Fraternity. The book is described as an exploration of world religions, their philosophies, and how they intersect with constitutional values.
“Secularism is not just an idea added to the Constitution—it is embedded within it, and it is the foundation on which fraternity rests,” he emphasized.
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